Finalists Announced for Inaugural Bath Dragons Competition!
Following a rigorous selection process, the four finalists in the inaugural Bath Dragons competition—organised by Richardson Swift, Mogers Drewett, South West Business Finance, and The Business Exchange can be announced.
The finalists are:
- Canned Wine Group
- Easyphones
- Untamed and the Untamed Off Grid project
- Hanora Health
These four companies stood out among dozens of entries and will now compete in the grand final on Thursday, 12th June, at the Apex City of Bath Hotel.
Up for grabs is a £20,000 expert support package consisting of tax, finance, legal and PR and communications support.
During the final, each company will present their ideas and face questions from the Bath Dragons panel, which includes:
- Debbie Boulton, Managing Director, Richardson Swift
- Tom Webb, Corporate and Commercial Partner, Mogers Drewett
- Dan Smith, Co-founder, South West Business Finance
- Anita Jaynes, Founder, The Business Exchange
The ultimate winner will be decided by an audience vote, with the whole business community invited to come along. Attendees will include specialists from Invest in B&NES, Bath BID, Bath Spa University Business School and University of Bath School of Management, amongst others.
Finalist, Ben Franks, Co-Founder, Canned Wine Group, said, “Canned Wine Group are delighted to have been selected as finalists for Bath Dragons! We are looking for new partners as we scale our business, and this is the perfect opportunity to collaborate and learn from the experience of other Bath-based businesses. With exciting product development in the pipeline, 2025 is shaping up to be a true ‘hockey stick’ year for the team at Canned Wine Group, with sales and partnership opportunities forecast to hit record highs. “Of course, to scale we need support – our new product range involves leasing of equipment and capital expenditure for site installation, requiring new legal contracts with our customers. Winning the investment of Bath Dragons would help expedite this process with limited financial pressure.
“As Co-Founder of Canned Wine Group, I’m proud of the hard work and dedication of the team to grow the business to date and I can’t wait to see what the next stage holds for us!”
Michael Kerstein, Managing Director and Founder, Easyphones, said, “I first developed Easyphones when my father was in a care home, and his cognitive ability and health starting to diminish due to Parkinson’s and the onset of Dementia. Due to my experience and success in the mobile phone industry, my father naturally relied on me to give him a phone he could easily use to keep in touch with family and friends. At that time I struggled to find a suitable device, so thought I would design an easy-to-use phone for Dad. So popular was the first Easyphone, that soon many residents wanted a similar solution and that was the start of the the Easyphone story.
“Since 2022 we have sold approximately 10,000 Easyphones; our mission is to help the elderly, isolated and people with disability stay connected and safe in a world that increasingly relies on the use of apps and the internet to remain digitally inclusive.
“With this award we aim to develop a wider range of Easyphones and enabled devices so our users can stay connected both in their homes and whilst out and about, with the added security of our built in GPS and SOS button.
“In the pipeline we are developing an AI avatar that will help the isolated stay engaged and stimulated with relevant subject matter on past memories and interests. We also aim to link various health monitoring devices to the Easyphone thus allowing our users to stay living in their own homes for longer, saving society and their families vast amounts of money.”
Jim Hughes, Founder, Untamed, commented, “I’m muchly excited to be selected as a finalist for the Bath Dragons’ Den event, pitching my Untamed Off Grid project. This project is a real passion, not to mention labour of love, of mine that helps people slow down, connect with nature and do their best work in a beautiful off-grid space. The fact I get to shout about this idea – and its benefits – with the Dragons and the local business community means a lot. I’m really looking forward to the final at the Apex Hotel and hearing other interesting people and their ideas. Hopefully between us, we can put on an entertaining evening and perhaps even inspire a few folks along the way. Big thanks to the organisers for giving small businesses a chance to shine (and be gently grilled!). Let’s bring some Untamed energy to the evening and have a bit of fun with it!”
Ross Austen, Hanora Health, said, “Reaching the final of the Bath Dragons competition is an incredible honour for Hanora Health. What began as a personal journey—experimenting with kombucha in my kitchen back in 2017—has evolved into a mission to share the benefits of better-for you, gut-friendly soft drinks with our community. It is awesome being recognised among other amazing local businesses validating my commitment to producing small-batch kombucha and water kefir that align with the holistic principles of Hauora. This reflects the dedication and support of our customers, stockists, and the wider Bath community. I am excited about the opportunity to grow further and continue promoting a healthy lifestyle. Thank you to the Bath Dragons team and fellow finalists—I am looking forward to the final at the Apex Hotel In Bath.”
Want to attend the live final?
Join us at the Apex Hotel, Bath, on Thursday, 12th June from 5:30 PM. Spaces are limited and allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Register your interest here.
For further information please email Helen Keating at Richardson Swift: Helen Keating hk@richardsonswift.co.uk